Sophomore at Princeton's Hun School wins music competition at Carnegie Hall

Pianist and singer Sanchitha Balasubramanian, a sophmore at the Hun School, performed at the Crescendo Competition at Carnegie Hall in New York on Jan. 26, 2013.TT

PRINCETON — How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, of course. One could say Sanchitha Balasubramanian, who recently took first place in a music and voice competition at the famed New York City concert hall, has been practicing since she was a child.

“I have been playing music my whole life,” the 15-year-old sophomore at the Hun School said.

Amazingly, the Monmouth Junction resident only learned piano four years ago, after years of training on violin.

Luckily, the teen has no problems reading music, and the notes for violin and piano are identical.

“That made switching instruments easier,” she said.

Her interest in singing became more serious a year ago, when the budding vocalist decided to join the Hun School Choir and pursue formal training in operatic arias.

Both decisions paid off, as her lifetime love of song resulted in two top prizes in the Carnegie Hall competition: both as a concert pianist and mezzo alto solo vocalist.
Her choices of Chopin Waltz Opus 64, No. 2 for piano and Lascia ch’io pianga, an aria from Handel’s opera “Rinaldo”, impressed the judges.

“I knew harder pieces, but I think we were judged on how we played, so it worked out,” she said of selecting Chopin for piano. “I had a connection to the song. I love waltzes, and Chopin is my favorite composer.”

Sanchitha grew up surrounded by music, first with toy xylophones, and with the encouragement of her parents.

“My dad is always listening to music and my mom sings,” she said. “My family is very musical.”

The teen took to singing naturally, and when she was in third grade picked up the violin.
She was hooked.

When she was 13, the musician decided to start showcasing her skills in competition, and went on to appear at Steinway Hall, the Workshop for Music Performance Hall, and Baruch Hall, before gracing the Carnegie Hall stage.

She said her favorite part of performing is watching the expressions of people in the audience, particularly if it’s a piece she enjoys playing.

She said she hopes to study music theory and compose her own original compositions in the future.

Music isn’t her only love. The sophomore, who says she earns high marks on her report card, is also an avid lacrosse player and photographer for her school yearbook.

She said that she is also interested in pursuing a career in science and engineering, but will “never quit” playing music.

“I plan to play all throughout high school and college, too,” she said.

Next up, Sanchitha will perform at the Golden Key Music Festival at Carnegie Hall on April 27.